The Founding of Tenochtitlan

Fact 3

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The Founding of Tenochtitlan

The 5th graders won a contest on history last week and their prize is a school visit to the Municipal House of Culture in their town where different events are hosted throughout the year. This time, there is an exhibition of Mexican history where they will have the opportunity to listen to a museum guide tell the legend on how the Aztecs founded Tenochtitlan as they see a reproduction of different pieces of art made by this culture. The children are also very excited because the school is organizing a Family & Friends event, where every group in school will exhibit works on different subjects and they will be responsible for the exhibition on history. So Mr Torres, their teacher is giving the students some guidelines to observe during their visit.

“Well group, we are arriving to the House of Culture now”, said Mr. Torres. “Remember to stay in line all the time. Don’t touch anything and respect the signs. Keep your voice when asking or exchanging information. And read the cards or labels that you’ll see next to each exhibited element because they give very important information about each piece. This will help us make the labels for the works of history we want to exhibit at the school event.

And the children entered the exhibition.

A guide welcomed the children and said: "Welcome to this exhibition where you will learn and see how the Aztecs founded Tenochtitlan. As we listen to the legend, we will stop to see different pieces of art and you will have an opportunity to read the labels and make notes on the information. So, let's start our visit" And the group started listening to the legend and admiring the paintings and replicas of ancient pieces of art.

Glossary

war: (n.) a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations There were many different indigenous tribes at that time. One day the Aztecs went to war with another tribe. The Aztecs lost the war, and they had to leave the city of Aztlan. They had to find a new city. But where could they go?

Huitzilopochtli was the Aztec god of the sun. He was the Aztec god of war, too. Huitzilopochtli was the most important of the Aztec gods. One day popular legend says that the god spoke to the Aztec priests.

- "Look at that picture", said Jaime. - "It's not a picture, silly. It's an ancient painting. Let's read the tag", said Sue.

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Huitzilopochtli was the god of the sun for the Mexica civilization and had other names but one mostly known, is Tezcatlipoca. His name means Southern hummingbird and lived in the 12th sky. Aztecs worship

Huitzilopochtli in different temples. "Wow! He had different names, how weird!", said Jaime. "Ok group, let's keep walking and listening to the legend. There are other interesting pieces to see", said the guide. Glossary

worship: (v.) to have or show a strong feeling of respect and admiration for God or a god. weird: (adj.) very strange and unusual, unexpected, or not natural.

Civilization: Mexica Home: 12 Sky Teteocán and Huitztlampa Other names: Tlacauepan Cuexcotzin [ 2 ] Ilhuícatl Xoxouhqui [ 3 ] Tezcatlipoca blue Uichilobos (Spanish nickname) Meaning of the name: Southern hummingbird Temples: Huitzilopochco Temple South chapel of the Templo Mayor Teopanzolco main temple

Glossary “Do not despair! Go away from here. Walk many days and despair: hope (n.) loss of nights. When you see a golden eagle standing on a prickly pear cactus with a snake in its beak, stop! Build your new city there! Go now, and do as I say!” The Aztec priests told the Aztec people what the great god, Huitzilopochtli, had said. So the Aztec people gathered together their possessions and prepared for a long journey.

-"Look! Another pict....oh, no! I remember. Another painting!, said Jaime

-"Correct, you are correct this time! Yes, another painting. Let's see what the card says." Said Sue.

Early colonial codices (books), like the Codex Boturini, show the migration of the Aztecs from one place to another, with footprints indicating the direction the ancestors walked on their journey. In this particular codex, we can see Huitzilopochtli carried on the back of one of the individuals migrating, alluding to his role in the migration.

Huitzilopochtli carried on the back of a person

Source: Codex Boturini, c. 1530-41, detail of folio 4

Place: Museo Nacional de Antropología, Mexico City

"Ready children?" said the guide, as the children kept listening to the legend and walking around looking at other paintings and ancient objects. Following their priests and leaders, they set out to find a new place to settle in. Glossary

priests: (pl.n.) one authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion especially as a mediatory agent between humans and God

The Aztec people walked for many, many days and nights. They searched and searched, but they found nothing! They walked until they reached an island on marshy ground. The island was on the Lake of Texcoco.

Glossary

searched: (past tense v.) to look into or over carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something

The Durán Codex or History of the Indies of New Spain and Tierra Firme Islands is a New Spanish manuscript made in the second half of the 16th century by the Dominican friar Diego Durán . It belongs to the collection of the National Library of Spain .

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Glossary

prickly: (adj.) coverd with thorns That is where legend says that the Aztecs suddenly saw a prickly pear cactus. And standing on the prickly pear cactus was a golden eagle.

"Another painting! This is incredible!" said Mr Torres. "Look children". And the children looked at it carefully! It was just as Huitzilopochtli had said. The golden eagle had a snake in its beak! They had found the place they were looking for.

"Let's see what the informative label on the painting says. Who wants to read it?" asked Mr Torres. And Jaime read it.

This image is found in the Durán Codex or History of the Indies of New Spain and Tierra Firme Islands which is a New Spanish manuscript made in the second half of the 16th century by the Dominican friar Diego Durán. It belongs to the collection of the National Library of Spain and shows the foundation of Tenochtitlan.

The high priest held up his hand for attention. The Aztec people stopped walking. “The great god, Huitzilopochtli, has led us to this place, and this is where we will build our new city,” said the high priest. And that is Glossary just what they did. drained: (past tense v.) to draw off It wasn’t easy at first, because (liquid) gradually or completely. the land was wet and marshy. To make gradually dry. But the Aztecs were smart. They drained the land and built canals. They enlarged the island by pushing great stones into the water and sticking the stones together with mud.

Finally they built a temple, which they dedicated to the god, Huitzilopochtli, and to Tlaloc, the Aztec god of rain. The new city was finished in 1325. The city was approximately five square miles across, which was a very big city at that time. It was the largest city in Pre-Colombian Mesoamerica. The Aztecs named their city Tenochtitlan, which means ‘rising from the water.’ 200,000 people lived there! Tenochtitlan became the center of the Aztec government and religion. Little by little it became the center of a vast Aztec empire.

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The Coyolxauhqui Stone, c. 1500. volcanic stone, found: Templo Mayor, Tenochtitlan (Museo del Templo Mayor, Mexico City). photo: Thelmadatter, public domain)

"You can still see the ruins of Tenochtitlan in the central part of Mexico City today, and learn about it in the museum there", said the guide. And Mr Torres finally said, "look at these ancient stones; they are both known in the world and represent Mexico, can you regonize them? If not, don't forget to read the labels and take notes for our main event".

The children read the labels, took notes, thanked the guide and returned to their school happy and exited. Now, they have the information they need to plan their exhibition for the main school event.

The Sun Stone (or The Calendar Stone) Aztec, reign of Moctezuma II (1502-20), discovered in 1790 at the southeastern edge of the Plaza Mayor (Zocalo) in Mexico City, stone (unfinished), 358 cm diameter x 98 cm depth. (Museo Nacional de Antropología)